Caboose

 27 May 26:

We interrupt our irregularly scheduled program to bring you the Lee Hall Station caboose and Depot.

Happenin's Around Skipper's Boatyard

 06 Jun 26:

Five years ago today we rolled into our Virginia place after an 16 hour adventure in SUPER POKEY.  The RV was not a bad way to move, we were in the middle of pandemic and considering we needed to move our pet fish. And the UHaul trailer actually stabilized the ride, dampening sway on our lightly loaded RV. 

Repairing hurricane rash today.

Sanding the grooves.

The green blob is TotalFair fairing compound, we sanded with 80  grit to knock down the big chunks.

Bath time.

Filthy dirt and grime.

7 boats in this photo. Shaping the gunwales on the Bahamas Dinghy.

Webb, Doug and Murray hard at work.

Added a halyard block.

Watering the gunwales to help them take shape.

Hampton University FJs

04 Jun 26:

Hampton University FJs

Rigger Tackle Box

 03 Jun 26:

My Uncle's tackle box, in service since the 1960s in one form or fashion.

Bahama Dinghy Gunwale Dry Fit

02 Jun 26:

Skipper insisted that we dry fit the gunwales...

...which involved a few clamps...

...and supervision.

 Log of HENNING

Boatyard Cat

 01 Jun 26:

The Inspector

WEAR a PFD - Springtime Cold Water Shock

 31 May 26:

We should have menitoned this earlier. Spring water temperatures lag behind air temp, for example in Maine right now the water temp ranges from the upper 40s to low 50s°F (4 to 11°C). It's a beautiful warm day so folks start putting their small boats in the water. At these temperatures, the risk of cold water shock and hypothermia is extremely high and life-threatening.

The Hypothermia and Cold Water Risk

• Cold Water Shock (Immediate Risk): Water conducts heat away from your skin 4 times faster than air. Sudden immersion in 40-50°F water triggers involuntary gasping, hyperventilation, and elevated heart rates, which can lead to drowning in seconds.
• Loss of Dexterity & Incapacitation: In water below 60°F, you can lose the use of your hands and arms in under 10 minutes, making it incredibly difficult to stay afloat or perform self-rescue.
• Expected Survival Time: At 40–50°F, exhaustion or unconsciousness occurs in 30 to 60 minutes, and maximum expected survival time is only 1 to 3 hours.

Essential Safety Guidelines

• Always wear a life jacket: The Coast Guard and Maine Warden Service strongly advise wearing a well-fitting, Coast Guard-approved life jacket whenever we are on or near the water during the spring....(How about all the time when we are on water depths over our head?
• Dress for the water, not the air: Even if the spring air warms into the 60s or 70s, the ocean remains lethally cold. Wearing a wetsuit or dry suit is highly recommended for all on-water activities.
• Track the current data: Before heading out, you can check real-time marine forecasts for the region.

PFD - Wear it.

• End of post quiz...In the photos below, when should we be wearing a PFD?

PFD = Yes

PFD = Yes

PFD = No

PFD = No

PFD = No

?

PFD = Yes

PFD = No

PFD = No

PFD = No

Bottle Jack Fluid Service

30 May 26:

Our little bottle jack leaked all its fluid at one point, so we added some more. We couldn't find bottle jack fluid today, so substituted power steering fluid.

There is a fluid fill hole on the side of the jack, we popped the plug out and filled the jack to the bottom of the hole.

The jack works great again!

 

Inland Waterways and Cat-ographers

 26 May 26:

The merchant mariner society of times past took great advantage of all the inland waterways of the Virginia Tidewater, especially during the American Revolution, bypassing the major Mid-Atlantic ports. As we explore with our small boats we find ourselves acquiring old topographic maps to chart places such as Pitch Landing. We get them printed and laminated at our local Office Express, and our resident Cat-Ographer helps with interpretation.

Zuni sits at the intersection of the Blackwater River and the Norfolk & Petersburg Railroad that was built back in the 1850s. There's also a major freeway, this would be a great place for an airport...

The Blackwater was navigable by steamboat all the way up to Franklin, just below Burdette, you could get all the way to Albemarle Sound and foreign points East. 

We plan to explore a few of these waterways and old rail trails, but only when the skeeter/temp ratio is just right.

Skipper and Bottom Paint

 24 May 26: 

10 years ago Skipper was scraping BARBASHELA's bottom, looking for paint colors. She found it, rusty brown.

Goo color matches we found were Kirby See Red and Valspar Mark Twain Brown, classic colors for the late 1800s river boats.